The Latest Transfer Rumours From Europe’s Major Leagues

January 10, 2018

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The January transfer window has now been open for just over a week and already some major deals have been made. However, with plenty of time remaining before the window closes there are sure to be many more. Here are the latest rumours from all of Europe’s major leagues.

England

Manchester United

Manchester United are known to be keen on signing Antoine Griezmann and there are reports that the forward is demanding £400,000-a-week to move to Old Trafford rather than Barcelona.

In other Manchester United news, the team have free run to sign Alex Sandro after Chelsea pulled out of the race to sign the Juventus defender. Sandro has been at Juventus since 2015 and there have been numerous reports linking him to the Premier League over the last few years.

There are also reports that Jose Mourinho will make a move for Mesut Ozil who will be out of contract at Arsenal at the end of the season. Rumours have surfaced that Arsenal may be willing to sell him for £35 million.

Both United and Chelsea have made enquiries for the Porto striker Moussa Marega. The striker has 14 goals and 2 assists to his name from 16 Primeira Liga appearances this season.

United may also be about to lose their young striker James Wilson to Championship side Sheffield United on loan. Wilson, 22, hasn’t played in the first team since he picked up an anterior cruciate knee ligament in July when he was on loan at Derby 16 months ago.

However, the team are likely to keep Mkhitaryan as they have said that they want at least €40 million for him, a fee that suitors are unlikely to be willing to pay.

Liverpool

Having sold Phillipe Coutinho to Barcelona, Liverpool are now looking to reinvest some of the money and there are reports that they are interested in Thomas Lemar and Riyad Mahrez.

There have been reports in the European press linking Lemar with Liverpool and he has previously been linked with Arsenal. Mayrez, who was the 2015/16 PFA Player of the Year, is reportedly eager to leave Leicester City.

It is also possible that Liverpool will bring RB Leipzig’s Naby Keita to Anfield this month. Liverpool signed Keita for £57 million last summer and he has stayed with Leipzig this season as part of the deal. However, Leipzig are known to oppose an early transition.

Rumours have surfaced that Real Madrid attempted to hijack Coutinho’s move to Barcelona and made a last minute offer of £177 million for the player, far more than the £146 Barcelona will pay. However, Coutinho’s determination to join Barcelona saw Real’s efforts fail.

In a final piece of Liverpool news, Divock Origi, who is on load to Wolfsburg from Liverpool, has said that he could imagine remaining with the Bundesliga side beyond the terms of his current season-long loan.

Southampton are reportedly eager to negotiate with Arsenal over the signing of Theo Walcott. Walcott, who joined the Gunners from Southampton when he was 16-years-old in 2006, has had few first-team opportunities at the Emirates Stadium this season.

Speaking after Southampton’s 1 – 0 win over Fulham over the weekend, manager Mauricio Pellegrino confirmed that they are interested in re-signing Walcott this month.

Meanwhile, Max Eberl, the Borussia Monchengladbach direct of sport, has insisted that the highly sought after defender Jannik Vestergaard will not be sold to Arsenal this month. The Danish international has been impressive this season and Arsenal are known to be interested in him, however Eberl said that they will not be selling any players this month.

Despite signing a new contract not very long ago, there have been reports that team boss, Arsene Wenger, may cut short his latest contract and move to the boardroom this summer. It was reported that he is considering Mikel Arteta as his replacement.

Wenger’s current contract reportedly contains a clause that allows both parties to review the situation at the end of the season and Wenger is thought to be doubtful about continuing beyond the summer.

Other Teams

Early this week reports emerged that both Watford and West Ham are interested in signing Swansea defender Alfie Mawson. While Swansea is struggling this season, Mawson has put in a number of impressive displays and has generated considerable interested.

Swansea are thought to be reluctant to sell Mawson this month and Mawson himself said in a recent interview that he wasn’t interested in a move.

Manchester City are thought to be determined to do their best to bring Giorgio Chiellini from Juventus. He is considered an alternative to Samuel Umtiti, the team’s other main target.

Chelsea are reportedly considering re-signing Thorgan Hazard from Borussia Monchengladbach. The attacker has six league goals and six assists to his name so far this season. However, a move for Eden Hazard’s brother is unlikely until the summer.

Italy

Juventus

There is speculation coming from all sides about the future of Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil and now Juventus are thought to be interested in making a move for the player. It is thought that if United don’t reach an agreement with Arsenal this month then Juventus will do their upmost to bring him at the end of the season.

The team has also opened negotiations with Liverpool about a move for Emre Can.

Inter Milan

Team boss Luciano Spalletti has reportedly had harsh words with the club’s directors trying to persuade them to buy more players this month. They have not won in their last seven games and Spalletti thinks that the squad is too thin to qualify for the Champions League. The team’s technical director, Walter Sabatini, is now in China where he is trying to persuade owner Suning Group to spend some money this month. Their main target is thought to be Javier Pastore, but they are also interested in Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Gerard Deulofeu and Ramires.

The Watford striker Stefano Okaka has reportedly requsted a move to Torino to reunite with his former boss Walter Mazzarri.

Spain

Barcelona

The early headlines this week was the team’s signing of Philippe Coutinho and there are reports that the player was so desperate to make the move happen that he paid €10 million of the potential €160 million that Liverpool could receive.

The next player likely to arrive at Barcelona is Yerry Mina. The team are close to signing him for €12 million from Palmeiras and he may arrive at the team this week.

It also looks likely that Barcelona will lose Aleix Vidal this January. The club are hoping to sell him to a club outside of Spain but the player wants to return to Sevilla who are hoping to secure a loan with the option to buy him at the end of the season.

Real Madrid

Real Madrid have ruled out bringing in a new goalkeeper this month as manager Zinedine Zidane does not want to upset the balance in the dressing room. It means that Athletic Bilbao’s keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga won’t be moving to the club until the summer despite him undergoing a medical with the club.

It also means that Getafe are unlikely to be able to sign Real Madrid’s No 2 Kiko Casilla. They are looking for replacements in goal before allowing Crystal Palace transfer target Vicente Guaita to leave. Guaita has six months left on his contract and a buyout clause of €8 million, but Palace only want to pay half of that.

Other Teams

It looks as if Jese will be cutting his time on loan at Stoke City short in order to join his hometown side of Las Palmas on a temporary deal from Paris Saint-Germain. The forward is eager to return to Spain so that he can be with his son Nyan who was born prematurely and has a number of medical conditions.

Germany

Bayern Munich have said that they will not be allowing Chelsea transfer target Arturo Vidal to leave this month. Boss Jupp Heynckes has denied that there has been any contact with Chelsea and insists that Vidal will be staying where he is. Furthermore, Heynckes said that he won’t be selling any players in this transfer window.

There are reports that Schalke want Chelsea’s Baba Rahman to return to them on loan but they want a clarification of his fitness before they make an official approach.

The French press has reported that Chinese teams are interested in Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with Guangzhou Evergrande and Beijing Guoan both said to be considering big-money moves for the player.

France

The former Sunderland midfielder Yann M’Vila is likely to leave Rubin Kazan due to the team’s financial troubles and it is thought that Saint-Etienne are interested in the 27-year-old.

Paris Saint-Germain are said to be interested in signing Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon. Sessegnon has rapidly made a name for himself this season as one of the most promising young talents in the world and there is likely to be competition from a number of major teams.

Edward Hughes is a lifelong sports fan who has dreamt about becoming a sports writer since his childhood days growing up in Manchester, rooting from his hometown team Man Utd. Edward is a sports expert who writes about a range of European football leagues as well as international sports. He covers a variety of events and is frequently published by numerous news groups.